1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to techniques for handling page load errors that occur when a requested web page or other object is unavailable or otherwise cannot be properly displayed.
2. Description of the Related Art
When a user attempts to access a web page via a web browser, various types of errors can occur that prevent the page from being displayed. For example, if the page request is directed to a valid host but to an invalid URL (Uniform Resource Locator), the host may return an “error 404: page not found” error message, which may be displayed within an error page. If the page request does not produce a response from a host at the target address, the web browser may display a default message indicating that the requested page cannot be displayed, or may “hang” until the user performs some action. In addition, in some cases, the page can be retrieved, but cannot be displayed due to script execution errors, unsupported data formats, or other problems relating to the content of the requested page.
These and other forms of “page load errors” can occur for various reasons. For example, a given URL that is valid at one time may become invalid. This may occur, for example, if the operator of a particular web site moves or deletes a particular web page, or moves the entire web site to a new host address. In addition, a user may mistype a URL, or may request a web page from a host that is currently not responding. Further, a web page may contain errors, or may contain data formats that are not supported by all web browsers.
Regardless of the cause, page load errors, and errors involving requests for other types of displayable objects, can be very frustrating to users. The present invention seeks to address this problem.